The Junior Ranger Badge Program is a great way to get your kids involved with visiting National Parks and National Historic Places. If you are looking to hit the largest park in the US, look no further.
Wrangell St. Elias National Park
When looking to get a Junior Ranger Badge, don’t overlook the largest National Park. At 20,587 square miles, Wrangell Saint Elias is enormous. Over six times the size of Yellowstone. There are nine states that are less than half that size. It is often skipped on Alaskan adventures in favor of Denali National Park, but Wrangell St. Elias offers unsurpassed views and camping, and very little traffic. Skip the Bus tour, rent a car and drive out to Slana.
How to get your Junior Ranger Badge at Wrangell St. Elias
The badges here were actually pretty simple to complete. I think the fact that you have found the park, and made your way out there is about 2/3 the work. The workbook has three levels of age appropriate activities that can all be completed by a visit to any part of the park (very handy when utilizing such a large area). Most of the questions are aimed at thinking about the local environment and history. There are informative displays in the ranger station that will help to uncover answers to the questions and puzzles, and of course, your friendly Ranger Staff. Our Ranger on duty, Ashley Eldridge, was happy to help and had stories to share about working in an incredibly remote park that can experience extreme weather and insane temperature swings (anywhere from -50 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit).
The Junior ranger badge booklets are free at Wrangell St. Elias Ranger Stations. As the park is so large, and there are only two Ranger stations, you can also complete your Junior Ranger Badge online and mail it in. If the booklet is approved, they will mail your certificate and badge to you.
Some of the campsites are in Wrangell St. Elias are quite a ways off of the beaten path. If you do visit one near the park road system, check out these hints for Car Camping with Kids!
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